Bow Trust or not on a H41DS?

[TFlight]

Hello All,
I'm new to the forums and in the early stages of shopping to upgrade from a MacGregor 26M to something like a 2007-2010 Hunter 41-DS shoal draft.
My wife and I are in our 50's and planing for our 60's on cruising the ICW from Annapolis as Snowbirds and sail the Caribbean in retirement.

My question among many is:
What are the pros & cons of a Bow Thruster, mostly cons like drag, performance penalty, maintenance, barnacles .... ??
If it's a great benefit, are there after market models that are good or to avoid, and how is the factory installed bow thruster?

Any input or recommendations in regardes to bow thruster or any other options I should look for or avoid in a H41-DS. I'm asumming from my research this is a good ship.

Thanks, TFlight

 

[OffDuty]

We have 2005 41DS and are actually in the process of taking the boat to have a bow thruster installed over the winter.

With the high freeboard, my wife and I found there were occasions that the bow was pushed around too much and difficult to control.

We are going with the IMTRA Side Power SE40 which was recommended by the Hunter dealer. Biggest issue if the amount of space forward of the head for installation.

We are going with the tunnel installation and are having the leading edge faired so there is little to no turbulence as the water passes over.

We shied away from the external thruster as we felt it would be a concern with picking up lobster pots, lines etc.

We absolutely love our 41DS, roomy, and fast under sail and power.

Best of Luck

Dave

 

[Patrik]

Hi
I have a 356 and installed a SidePower SE60. The installation is described in the Owners modification.

 

[oschulz]

I have a bow thruster on my 2007 DS. We are new to sailing such a large sailboat so every bit of help around the marina, specially when trying to get the boat into the slip, helps a lot. The original owners chose the Vetus thruster and the second owner had it reconditioned last year. We bought the boat a couple of months ago. I can also tell you that all my friends with sailboats at HHS (south of Annapolis) wish they had a bow thruster.

 

[artboas]

Absolutely necessary

Hello All,
I'm new to the forums and in the early stages of shopping to upgrade from a MacGregor 26M to something like a 2007-2010 Hunter 41-DS shoal draft.
My wife and I are in our 50's and planing for our 60's on cruising the ICW from Annapolis as Snowbirds and sail the Caribbean in retirement.

My question among many is:
What are the pros & cons of a Bow Thruster, mostly cons like drag, performance penalty, maintenance, barnacles .... ??
If it's a great benefit, are there after market models that are good or to avoid, and how is the factory installed bow thruster?

Any input or recommendations in regardes to bow thruster or any other options I should look for or avoid in a H41-DS. I'm asumming from my research this is a good ship.

Thanks, TFlight

The 41 is a large boat with lots of freeboard
You will find that the thruster is invaluable.
Do not consider the external Exturn unit.
Had dealings with them
Less than professional
Go with a tunnel thruster.

 

[TFlight]

Thank you for your response.

It's clear to me that the benefits outweigh the cons of having a bow thruster on 41DS especially if considering maneuvering in tight locations, the high freeboard, and aging muscles. It's also nice to know there are aftermarket models available that can be installed if the boat I choose does not come equipped with one.

Thanks again,
Tony

 

[Brigadoon460]

I have a H460 that's on the hard getting a bow thruster installed as I type this message (Side-Power SE100/185T). Having maneuvered the boat without a thruster I can say that it will definitely take the stress out of docking and make sailing more enjoyable, though I strongly suggest you learn to master docking without one in the event that it doesn't work, after all it is a boat and we know that the unexpected always happens.

I would echo most of the previous posts in that a tunnel thruster is your best option even if the cost is higher. I would recommend that you find a good installer that has a very capable fiberglass specialist as you will need to create a "spoiler" on the leading edge to channel the water around the tunnel opening, this will mitigate most drag. Also it is important to get the thruster installed as low and far forward as possible to provide the most lateral movement and prevent cavitation.

http://i749.photobucket.com/albums/xx137/jonsie1083/photo3.jpg
http://i749.photobucket.com/albums/xx137/jonsie1083/photo2.jpg
http://i749.photobucket.com/albums/xx137/jonsie1083/photo5.jpg

 

[TFlight]

I have a H460 that's on the hard getting a bow thruster installed as I type this message (Side-Power SE100/185T)....

Thanks for the reply and sharing your pictures. That must have been gut wrenching to see them drill that cannon ball size hole in her bow. The finished job looks great, you'll be doing pirouettes in no time.
I'm still researching and comparing between the Hunter 41 or 44 DS 2006 to 2008 and look for a tunnel thruster or none at all so I can install one later.

 

[SEMPERAVANTI41]

I installed a Lewmar 140TT this spring myself. I used the SOP from Hunter and did the installation as per the factory instructions. Space for the tunnel is extremely tight. Before trying to install another manufactures unit, I would be cautious about installation space. The 140TT has a 6" diameter tunnel which appears to me to be the largest diameter possible to fit in the space Hunter has allowed for the tunnel (which is under the "step-up" in the forward cabin in front of the door to the forward head).

I carefully faired the tunnel opening at the hull and created a spolier, which is something the factory does not do. I can detect no change in performance from the tunnel. Docking has become much more controlled and frankly I wonder why I did not do this earlier.

If you are interested I can post or send the SOP from Hunter and photos of my installation.

 

[Scotty C-M]

I agree with the above. I find the bow thruster on my 40 foot Catalina to be quite useful in certain conditions.

I do however have a question about fairing in a "spoiler". My boat has a Vetus unit in a tunnel. No fairing. I notice no negative performance characteristics. I've seen some speculation that the column of water in the tube creates a static flow surface, which makes a fairing unnecessary. I have no idea if that is true. I've also read speculation that a spoiler is a benefit. Again, I do not have any idea if that is true. Do any of you out there know of any flow (fluid) dynamic studies that have been done on this question?

Thanks,

Scotty

 

[SEMPERAVANTI41]

Most thruster manufacturers provide detailed instructions about spoilers and directing the flow of water away from the trailing edge of the tunnel. My guess is that creating and finishing the spoiler is time consuming, so on many installations it is left out. All manufactures instruct that the rounding of the radius where the tunnel meets the hull to be around 10 % of the diameter of the tunnel. I have examined a number of factory installations and have failed to see much attempt at providing this requirement.

 

[Brigadoon460]

What is the SOP? Is this something available as a download?

As far as fluid dynamics I did not encounter any studies on the concept but read that not every boat needs a spoiler. The best way to check is stand directly in front of your bow and look down the side. If you can see the aft edge of your tunnel you need to flair the leading edge to prevent the drag. I think it's safe to assume you could lose .25knt speed. I'm sure most large volume boat builders opt to not flair the leading edge as a time saver.

 

[SEMPERAVANTI41]

SOP attached below from Hunter. It is a set of instructions for dealers adding options to boats.

H41 Bow Thruster.pdf

 

[Terry Cox]

Bow Thruster

We've had our 1991 P42 since 2002. At first I tried to make maneuvers Belle-Vie disagreed with due to wind and/or current pressures. I have since learned to maneuver her in difficult conditions using techniques she likes and have obtained great results all without a bow thruster. She can be a pussy cat most of the time and I like the challenge she poses when I want her to do what needs to be done.

It is all about knowing your boat's behavior, wind and current conditions at the moment, and how you think these will affect or play on your maneuver. Perhaps this topic is worthy of more discussion before you drill that cannon ball size hole in your boat; shiver me timbers.

Terry Cox

 

[Mikem]

Re: Bow Thruster

My boat, a 466, came with a bow thruster so that was a new and welcome experience for me. I plan each maneuver without counting on the bow thruster and the great majority of the time everything works out just fine. However, the occasional stronger than expected current or sudden wind gust in a narrow fairway and the bow thruster with a short burst has bailed me out of a dicey situation. And as I do the docking the bow thruster reduces the line strain on my first mate as we finalize the maneuver.

 

[jwieneck]

i have a 2005 41 DS I am wondering what a installation of a bow thruster cost?

 

[OffDuty]

Bowthruster Cost

The installation of our bowthruster has just been completed, we are actually going down today to have a look at it. I will try to take some pictures. We are having the bottom redone as well so it may still need a bit of cleanup to be totally complete.

To answer your question, we had ours installed by Wiggers Yachts in Bowmanville ON, (google them - long history of building quality racing yachts) and taxes in it was approximately $7200.00 which includes everything including winter storage, haul out and launch, battery cables etc.

Shop around, I also received quotes in the $11,000.00 range that didn't include storage etc.

Dave

 

[OffDuty]

Photos of bow thruster installation as promised. Little bit of finishing to be done before the spring but very happy with the work done.

 

[Marc14857]

Bow Thruster on Hunter 41DS

We have a Factory installed Bow Thruster (Side Power SE) on our 2005 44 AC. Have not had any significant problems with it since we purchased the boat new. Our boat is in a slip halfway down a somewhat narrow fairway and it often comes in handy especially in a cross wind or current. It's also very useful when pulling into transient slips at other marinas that sometimes have tight maneuvering space. We are in our early 60s and though we cold probably get by without it, were glad we have it. It takes a lot of the stress, yelling , etc out of docking.